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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25365157">The Winter's Crime Family</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/band_of_brothers_fan_girl/pseuds/band_of_brothers_fan_girl'>band_of_brothers_fan_girl</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Band of Brothers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Criminals, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Crimes &amp; Criminals, M/M, Organized Crime</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 09:07:06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>10,206</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25365157</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/band_of_brothers_fan_girl/pseuds/band_of_brothers_fan_girl</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A seasoned detective discovers the recent murder of a fellow cop.  He slowly pieces together the puzzle and realizes its all a lot bigger than he is.  What happens when he gets himself pulled into the inner workers of NYC?  Will he be able to stay on the right side of the law, or with he be pulled into the dark depths of the Winter's Crime Family?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Babe Heffron/Eugene Roe, Carwood Lipton/Ronald Speirs, Donald Malarkey/Skip Muck, George Luz/Joseph Toye, Joseph Liebgott/David Kenyon Webster, Kitty Grogan/Harry Welsh (mentioned), Lewis Nixon/Richard Winters</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Blood in the Water</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Note - This is my first ever AO3 Band of Brother piece so please be kind 🥺.  I plan on writing a shit ton of chapters, so don't worry!  I'll try to update it every few days, but if it takes me a week to upload a chapter, it's probably a long one.  </p><p>Follow me on tumblr @band-of-brothers-headcannons for more Band of Brothers content.  </p><p>Thank you to @muerete-cagnado on tumblr for being my Beta Reader!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>    A soft breeze ruffles through Carwood’s hair as he closes his car door.   He takes a glance around and strides towards the yellow police tape blocking off the alley.  A young officer reaches down and lifts the tape up for him, voicing a quiet greeting.  Carwood breathes a soft, ‘Thanks,’ and gives the man a short nod of curiosity before bending under the tape and walking towards the scene of the crime.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>The alley was buzzing as he walked down it; officers chatting about what might have happened, cameras clicking as they take photos of evidence.  Towards the middle of the alley stands a large garbage can; against it leans a man.  The man was ghostly in complexion and had one large red splotch poking through the blue sweatshirt he was wearing.  Carwood takes a second to glance him over before stopping in front of him.</span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Morning, Detective Lipton.”  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>Carwood looks to his left and finds Skinny Sisk there, two coffees in hand.  A soft smile touches his lips as he takes the coffee Skinny held out to him in offering.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Good morning, Wayne.”  The elder man says.  “Thank you for grabbing coffee this morning.”  He lifts the cup to his lips and takes a sip.  Skinny always managed to get his order right:  A medium roast with 2 creamers and 3 sugars.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Of course, Sir.”  Skinny nods, sipping his own coffee.  The two of them turn their heads back to the body in front of them.  Carwood slips a hand into his pocket as he shifts his gaze the medical examiner next to it.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Good morning, Renѐe.”  Carwood greets, giving the woman a small wave.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Morning, Detective Lipton.  I’d say it’s good to see you again if we weren’t under these circumstances.”  The woman says with a sober smile.  She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and looks back at the body for a moment.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Do we know who the vic is yet?”  Carwood questions, taking another sip from his cup.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Yes,”  Renѐe says as she rises to her feet and looks at Carwood.  “The vic is Detective Floyd Talbert.  He was working on an undercover case investigating the mob in the area.  My guess is that he got too close to finding something out so they killed him.”  She mumbles, looking back at the man.  Carwood frowns a tad, and takes in Floyds face, slowly recognizing him.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“I knew of him.  He was a good man.”  Carwood says sadly.  He remembers working with Floyd on a case when the younger man had first joined the force.  He was a good cop, always working hard to bring justice.  Unfortunately, not everyone lives to see justice served.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Wait, there’s a mob?”  Skinny asks, his eyes widening.  Carwood chuckles and nods, looking at the young man.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Yeah, you didn’t know?  It’s really less of a mob and more like a gang.  They call themselves the Winter’s Crime family.”  The latter explains.  Skinny’s jaw drops a little before he quickly closes his mouth, no knowing what to say.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Man, they really don’t teach you anything in the academy anymore.”  Carwood jokes, looking at the Medical Examiner.  Renѐe lets out a soft chuckle and shakes her head a bit.  The man takes a quick glance and sees Skinny blush, taking a drink from his coffee as he looks away.  Carwood smiles a tad at that and then gets back to work.  “How was Floyd killed?  It looks like a stab wound to me.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Renѐe nods, squatting back down next to the body.  “You’d be correct, Detective.  He was stabbing just below the ribcage in his abdomen.  Most likely with some sort of pocket knife.”  She explains and gestures to the size of the wound.  “Now if he had been stabbed just a half inch to the left he likely would have survived.  But, the knife punctured his abdominal aorta.  He most likely bled out in a matter of minutes.  Other than that, he has bruising along his cheek bone and knuckles, and a busted lip.  This probably indicates he and his attacker fought before he was inevitably stabbed.  By my estimations it happened between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m. last night.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Carwood sighs and nods, looking around for a moment.  He examines the area around them and tries to find any evidence of who could have done this.  Not finding anything, he looks around and spots a security camera mounted high on the alley wall.  He walks over to it and sees that it is still functioning.  He turns to Skinny and says, “When we finish up here, I want you to get a warrant to look at that security footage.  That’ll probably show us who did it.”  He sees Skinny nod and the older man sighs, his eyes traveling back to Floyd.  His gaze lands on his left hand, where a plain silver wedding band was wrapped around his ring finger.  “While you do that, I’ll go talk to his spouse.”</span>
</p><p>
  
</p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>This was the part of the job that Carwood hated the most.  It always hurt him to deliver the devastating news to families that their loved one had passed.  Whether it was a car crash, a suicide, or a murder.  As leaving the crime scene, Carwood had looked Floyd Talbert up in the system and found out where he and his husband had lived.  He reluctantly goes to the address and rings the doorbell.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>After a moment passes, a man opens the door and greets him.  “Hi, How may I help you?”  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>Carwood takes a steadying breath to calm himself.  “Good morning, Mr. Grant.  I’m Detective Carwood Lipton with the N.Y.P.D..  I worked with you husband, Floyd.”</span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>Chuck frowns a bit.  “Is something wrong?  Is Floyd okay?”  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>Carwood shakes his head a little and sighs.  “May I please come in?” He asks somberly.  He watches worry and dread flash over the man’s face before he nods and steps aside to let him in.  Carwood gives a soft thanks as he walks inside the home.  Chuck closes the door and turns back to him.  </span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“Uhm, Please.  Sit.”  Chuck encourages, leading him over to the living room, where he sits down on the leather loveseat.  Carwood follows and slowly sits down on the couch adjacent to Chuck.  He feels his stomach turn as the other man watches him.  He must have hesitated too long because Chuck says, “Just get it over with.  Tell me he’s gone.”  His voice was shaky and weak.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Carwood gives a small nod, “I’m sincerely sorry for your loss.”  He quietly looks away as he sees Chuck put his hand over his mouth, looking away.  Chuck takes a moment to process that, a few tears slipping down his cheeks.  It takes Chuck a few minutes to calm down as he wipes his eyes, tears still threatening to fall.  He hesitates and takes a deep breath.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Did….”  There was so much pain and sorrow in his voice.  “Did he suffer?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Carwood shakes his head.  “No, he was stabbed in his abdominal aorta.  He went quickly.”  He says softly and Chuck nods, still not looking at the detective.  He knew what Chuck was going through.  He remembered that feeling of loss and mourning from when he was 10 years old.  Carwood sighs softly.  “I know you’re going through a lot right now, but I need to ask you some questions.  It’ll help us figure out who did this to your husband.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Chuck nods and finally glances at him.  “Ask away.”  He mumbles.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Carwood nods and quietly takes out his little notepad and pen.  “Did Floyd tell you about where he was going last night?”  He asks.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Chuck nods and says, “He went to some bar.  He didn’t give me much of a reason other than it was for work.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    The detective nods.  “Do you remember the name of the bar?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “No, he didn’t say.”  Chuck murmurs softly, hugging himself a little as he talks.  Carwood nods and goes to ask another question when Chuck says, “Whatever bar it was, he went to it a lot.  Either he was picking up drinking or it really was for work.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    That made Carwood raise an eyebrow.  “Did he ever tell you anything about work?  Did he discuss any cases or anything like that?”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Chuck shakes his head.  “Floyd never really liked talking about it, even when I asked.  All I know is that he was working on something pretty serious, and whatever it was, I think he was close to closing the case.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Carwood nods and jots a few things down, before putting his small notepad away into his jacket pocket and standing.  “Thank you for helping me, Mr. Grant.  If you ever need anything or remember something that Floyd did or told you, please contact me.  My email and number are on the back.”  He says and hands Chuck one of his business cards.  Chuck gently takes it and nods, still looking numb.  “And again, I’m very sorry for your loss.”  He says, his voice softening a bit.  Chuck glances at him and nods slightly.  Carwood takes that as his que to leave and silently walks out of the house.  As he walks to his car, Carwood pulls out his phone and calls Skinny.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    The cellphone rings for a couple times before the line picks up, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Hey Lipton.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”  Skinny says through the phone.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Hey, Wayne.  Did you manage to get that security cam footage?”  Carwood asks, unlocking his car.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Yeah, I did.  I’m watching it right now.  So far, I’ve found nothing.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Alright, well, keep looking.  I’ll be over there in a few minutes.”  Carwood says, sliding into the driver seat of his BMW.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “</span>
  <em>
    <span>See ya in a few.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”  Skinny says before Carwood hangs up and starts driving. </span>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>    After a short drive, Carwood pulls up outside the location and parks his car.  Next to the alley Floyd had been killed in was a gentlemen’s club.  Carwood sighs as he looks at it, but knows he has to go inside.  He pulls himself out of his BMW and slams the door shut.  He walks to the front door and knocks.  It was still early in the day, around 9 am, so he knew they weren’t open yet.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    The door of the club swings open to reveal a very tall and muscular man.  Carwood looks up to his face and notices a shaved head and thick dark beard.  He was clearly the bouncer for the club.  The man looks Carwood up and down before making eye contact.  Carwood wasn’t phased by the dark and intense eyes looking at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “We don’t open till 10 tonight.”  He says in a deep and raspy voice before going to shut the door.  Carwood quickly stops the door with his foot, pulling out his badge.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “My name is Detective Carwood Lipton, I’m with the N.Y.P.D. My partner, Detective Wayne Sisk is already inside, so I’d appreciate it if you could let me through.”  Carwood informs, his voice even and calm, but intense.  He sees the man’s eyes glance from his face to his badge and back to his face before he nods and steps aside.  “Thank you.”  Carwood says, tucking his badge back into his breast pocket as he walks through the door.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    The club was one giant room with a few small stages and tables off to the sides.  The lights had been turned on so everything in the club was illuminated.  There were some stray pieces of confetti and glitter littering the concrete floor.  Carwood walks through the empty room and to the back room were he finds Skinny and the manager of the club sitting at the computer.  Carwood walks to them and stands behind them.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Find anything yet?”  He asks and Skinny nods, glancing at him.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Roll the tape back to 11:30 pm.”  Skinny instructs the manager.  The man nods and reverses the footage to around 11:30 the night before.  Carwood watches for a few moments before he sees two men walk into the frame of the alley and pass the garbage.  Just as they do, Floyd follows behind them, keeping his distance.  Then, the two men stop and turn around, seeming to confront Floyd.  Carwood sees Floyd put his hands up as he talks to the men, almost to show he wasn’t armed or a robber.  Then, the two men and Floyd start fighting.  Floyd was clearly outnumbered but put up a hard fight, knocking one of the guys down.  This seemed to trigger the other man to pull out a knife, which he used to stab Floyd.  The detective stumbles back and lands against the garbage can, sliding down as he bleeds out.  The man who stabbed him quickly puts the knife away and helps the other guy up.  The two of them briskly move out of the alley and head in the opposite direction they were before, which Carwood strikes as odd.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Carwood frowns softly.  “Can you zoom in on the men’s faces?”  He asks the manager, who nods and does so.  The quality of the footage was extremely poor, but Carwood could roughly make out their faces.  The shorter man had a square face with dark hair and eyes, while the taller man had a longer face with similarly dark features.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “I’d say the two of them are roughly 5’8” to 5’10” probably 160 to 180 pounds. Probably between the ages of 20 and 25.”  Carwood says and looks at his partner.  “Take some photos of them and bring in to a sketch artist at the station.  I’m gonna try and get the traffic cam footage and see where these guys went.”  The younger man nods and takes some photos of the screens.  Once he’s done, he thanks the manager and stands.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Carwood and Skinny walk out together, passing the bouncer Carwood had met earlier.  “Have a nice day.”  Carwood waves and the man simply nods at him, crossing his arms over his chest.  As they exit, the older man glances back at the door.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Well that guy wasn’t very friendly.”  Carwood jokes as he and Skinny get in his car.  The younger detective chuckles, buckling his seatbelt.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Probably doesn’t like cops in his club.”  Skinny jokes back and Carwood nods, buckling up and starting the car.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    “Probably.”  Carwood agrees, driving them to the precinct.  </span>
</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>At the precinct, Skinny gets a sketch artist to draw the two men’s faces and writes up a description for a wanted poster.  Carwood gets a warrant and searches the city’s traffic camera footage for the two men.  He first starts with the camera on the corner of Smithbrooke and Western, which was right next to the alley Talbert was killed in.  He watches the footage and sees the men take a right onto Western and he follows them, switching cameras.  They then take a left onto Madison Avenue.  They continue straight before making another left onto James street.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>    Then, Carwood watches as they make their way into a building.  It happened to be an art gallery, which Carwood found very strange, considering they had just committed a murder and the gallery was obviously closed.  He watches the tape and at around 12 am, he sees another man enter the gallery.  Then, Carwood doesn’t see either of the three men leave the building until 6 a.m that same day.  He watches as the man who arrived by himself leaves by himself.  Carwood briskly writes down the address of the art gallery before making his way there.  </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Crime is a Form of Art</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  
  <span>After Carwood had discovered where the suspects had ran to after committing their murder, he drives to the art gallery.  He had opted to go on his own so that Skinny could start on the tedious job of paperwork.  Carwood pulls up next to the curb and parks his car, gazing out his window at the building.  It was a beautiful building, despite being on the smaller side.  The detective had never heard of this gallery until that morning, but he did know of the gym that stood in its place a few years before.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  
  <span>The blonde unbuckles his seat belt and climbs out of his car, shutting the door.  He makes his way to the front door and opens it, walking inside.  As soon as he passes through the threshold, a shiver runs down his spine.  He takes a gander around and sees a few people walking around, admiring the art on the walls.  The front room of the gallery was quite big, with tall white walls and a plain hardwood floor.  He makes his way through the room and to the enterese of the next, keeping his eye out for the owner or maybe a worker.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    The next room Carwood walks into was a bit smaller than the previous, large tapestries were draped on the wall and a few sculptures stood in the center of the room.  None of the works were anything extravagantly famous, it was a small local gallery after all.  Carwood pauses a moment to look at a painting that had caught his eye.  It was a large painting with a delicate gold frame.  The painting depicted a farmhouse sat atop a small hill, with fields of crops surrounding it.  It reminded him of the farms back home in West Virginia.  He must have been looking at it for a long while because a man walks up next to him.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “It’s a beautiful painting, isn’t it?”  The man asks, putting his hands in his suit pockets.  Carwood turns his head a bit to look at the man and nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Yeah, it is.”  Carwood agrees, glancing back at it.  He noticed the tag on the side of the painting, listing the name, price and artist behind the piece.  </span>
  <em>
    <span>Humble Beginnings</span>
  </em>
  <span>.  That seemed like a wonderful name for it.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “If you want to buy it, I have to tell you already have someone interested in it.”  The man says and turns to face Carwood more.  “Unless. . .you have the higher bid.”  He smirks and that draws a chuckle out of Carwood, who shakes his head.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “No, no.  I’m not looking to buy it.  I probably couldn’t even afford the frame.”  Carwood jokes and the other man chuckles.  “But, I am looking for the owner of the gallery.”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    The man cocks a brow, tilting his head slightly.  “Well you’re looking at him.  The name’s Liebgott.  Joseph Liebgott.”  He says and extends his hand to shake.  Carwood nods and shakes it.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Liebgott.  I’m Detective Carwood Lipton with the N.Y.P.D..”  Carwood says, pulling out his badge to show him.  Liebgott takes a look at it, shifting his gaze back to Carwood.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “How may I help you, Detective?”  Liebgott asks, his voice sounding intrigued.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “I just have a few questions for you, Mr. Liebgott.  If we could step into your office, that would be great.”  Carwood says, tucking his badge away.  Liebgott nods and leads Carwood to the back of the gallery and into his office.  It was a decent sized room with a large desk in the center.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Please, have a seat.”  Liebgott says, gesturing to the chairs positioned in front of the desk.  Carwood nods and takes a seat, getting himself comfortable as he watches Liebgott close the office door and the circle his way to his desk.  Liebgott rolls out his chair before taking a seat himself.  “Now, what do you need, Detective?”  Liebgott asks, resting his elbows on the desk.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Well, I need to ask you about a murder that occured last night.”  Carwood starts.  He watches Liebgott cock a brow, leaning follow in curiosity.  “We have reason to believe after the murder was commited early this morning, the suspects entered your gallery and are possibly still in the building.”  Carwood explains, watching Liebgotts face.  All he could read from him was concern and worry.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “How is that possible?  I haven’t gotten any alert of a break in.”  Liebgott says and logs on his desktop.  He types something in and does a few clicks.  “What time did they supposedly break in?”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Around 12 a.m., Sir.”  Carwood says, waiting patiently.  Liebgott nods and does a few more clicks.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “I don’t understand.  There was no alert of any of the doors opening and none of the cameras or motion detectors were triggered at all last night.”  Liebgott says, turning the desktop monitor so Carwood could see.  Carwood leans forward and reads the screen.  The last log of any activity was at 10 p.m. last night when the art gallery closed and the next time the cameras picked something up was when Joe himself came in to open up the gallery at 9 a.m..  Carwood immediately knew something was up, but didn't show it on his face.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Is there any way I could get a copy of that log, Mr. Liebgott?”  Carwood asks, looking back at the man sitting across from him.  He sees Liebgott pause for a split second.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Of course, Detective.  Anything I can do to help.”  The man nods, flashing him a smile.  Carwood gives a bit of a smile back and nods, standing.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Thank you, Mr. Liebgott. Just send a copy of the log and camera footage to the email address on this card.  We’ll most likely find nothing, but I’d like my team to review it.”  Carwood says and holds out one of his business cards.  He watches as Liebgott glances from him, to his card, and then back at him before he reaches out and takes it.  “Better to be safe, than sorry.”  Carwood adds.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Liebgott gives a tight nod.  “Right.  Well, have a good day, Detective.”  He says, almost dismissively.  Carwood nods and takes one last glance around his office before leaving.  He shuts the door on his way out but before he can even take a few steps down the hall, he slams right into someone.  Carwood stumbles back and regains his ground.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Oh my god, I’m so sorry.  Are you alright?”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Carwood looks up and sees the man he had bumped into.  He was very young looking with raven black hair and wide bright blue eyes.  “Uh, yeah.  I’m fine, sorry.  I didn't see you there.”  Carwood says.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “No, no, it was my fault.  Sorry, I’m new here.  Please don’t complain to Mr. Liebgott.”  The man says, sounding extremely nervous.  Carwood frowns and shakes his head.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Hey, it’s alright.  I’m not an art goer.  I’m not gonna complain about you to anyone.”  Carwood assures and he can visibly see the man’s shoulders drop with relief and give a little nod.  Carwood offers him a soft and gentle smile.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Thank you.”  The man says.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “No need to thank me.  Just go about your day and watch out where you're walking.”  Carwood smiles gently and pats his upper arm before walking past him and making his way out of the gallery.  As he leaves, Carwood can’t help to think about how good of a liar Liebgott must be.  If he hadn’t watched the two men enter the gallery on the traffic cam, he would have never doubted him.  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>    As soon as Lipton leaves his office, Joe let’s out a groan and puts his head in his hands. “God fucking damnnit.”  He grumbles.  He wills himself to just sit there and not throw his computer monitor across the room.  He takes a moment to simply breathe before he quickly grabs his phone.  He dials the number and brings the phone up to his ear.    A moment later, Bill picks up on the other end.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “</span>
  <em>
    <span>The fuck you want, Lieb?</span>
  </em>
  <span>”  Bill asks, clearly annoyed.  Joe feels his chest puff up with anger but he restrains himself.  Or at least partly restrains himself.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “I need you and Toye to get your asses to the gallery right now.”  Joe practically growls.  “We have a major problem.”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “</span>
  <em>
    <span>What kind of problem?</span>
  </em>
  <span>”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “The cops just came by looking for you two.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Shit.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Joe huffs.  “Yeah, so you and Toye need to get here ASAP.  I’ll call Harry and Buck and tell them the wonderful situation you got us into.”  Joe says sarcastically.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Hey, it’s not my fault some cop trailed us.  If we hadn’t killed him then all of us would probably be in jail right now.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”  Bill snaps a little.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Joe rolls his eyes.  “Just get your ass over here.  Now.”  He demands and hangs up on him.  Joe quickly calls both Harry and Buck and explains the situation and how they need to have a meeting.  Harry and Buck tell him they’ll be there soon and hang up.  Joe groans and runs his hands over his face.  He takes a moment to just breathe and try to calm down, but a knock on his door doesn’t help.  “What?”  He growls out.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    The door creaks open painfully slow and David walks in.  “Uh, Joe, some guy was just here. He-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Yeah, I fucking know, Webster.”  Joe snaps, standing up.  David flinches at this and shuts up immediately.  “It was just a friend of mine.  Now would you just go do some paperwork or something, I’m busy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Uh, actually that’s actually why I came in here.”  David squeaks out.  “I finished all the paperwork you gave me.”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Joe’s eyes widen and his jaw drops a bit.  “I gave you a stack like 3 feet tall!”  He exclaims, shocked.  He pauses and just sighs.  “Just sit down and relax for a minute then.  I don’t have any more work for you and I have a very important meeting in a couple minutes.”  Joe says and he sees David open his mouth to say something.  “Go talk to Jerry or something.  God fucking damnit, Webster.”  He grumbles and slides past him, walking out of his office.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Joe heads to the back room of the gallery and closes the door behind him.  He pulls his keys out of his pocket and walks to the “storage” closet to his right.  He pulls his keys out and unlocks it.  He walks through and locks the door behind him as he heads down the staircase.  As he reaches the bottom he sees that Harry and George are already there.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “What the hell is this about, Lieb?”  Harry asks, crossing his arms over his chest.  He was standing off to the side while George sat on one of the folding chairs legs extended out in front of him.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Joe sighs.  “Some detective stopped by today, asking about 2 guys who apparently murdered someone and then came into the gallery last night.”  He explains and he sees George furrows his brow.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “You’ve gotta be kidding him.”  Harry groans and Joe nods in agreement.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Wait, what happened?”  George asks, out of the loop.  Joe goes to say something when Bill, Joe and Babe walk down the stairs</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “What the fuck did you two get yourselves into?”  Harry demands, looking between Bill and Toye as they join the group.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Well, hello to you too, Harry.”  Bill sasses back as Babe takes a seat next to George.  The two of them exchange a soft greeting, both not sure of what is going on. </span>
</p>
<p>
  
  
  <span>“Look, Harry we didn’t know what else to do.  He was following us and he would’ve told someone about who we were if Bill didn’t kill him.”  Toye tries to reason.  Babe’s eyes widen.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Wait, Bill killed a guy?”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Yes, I fucking killed someone, what’re  you stupid?”  Bill asks and that makes Babe upset.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Hey!  You didn’t tell me what happened last night!  So sorry I didn’t know!”  Babe sasses back, raising his voice a bit.  Both of them start to go back and forth and the others try to stop them just as Buck walks in.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Everyone shut up and sit down!”   Buck yells, and everyone immediately quiets.  He huffs and stands next to Harry as Bill and Toye take their seats.  He lets them sit in silence for a moment before speaking again.  “Now, let’s be civil.  Bill, for those who don’t know, explain what happened last night.”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Bill sighs and crosses his arms.  “After work last week, Joe and I went to Toccoa to have a few beers and just relax.  As soon as we walked in, Joe noticed a face he’d never seen before at the bar.  It was some guy, sitting at the bar, drinking by himself.  We ignored him and had our night.  The next couple times we went it, that same guy was there, sitting in the same spot, drinking the same beer.  The whole time we were there, he kept watching us.  And as soon as Joe and I go to leave, so does the guy.  We start heading to our apartment building and the guy is still trailing us.  So, I turn around and confront him.  He acts like he’s not doing another thing but from the way he was talking and acting, I knew he was an undercover cop.  So, we started fighting and neither Joe or I could knock him down.  The guy was scrappy and strong as hell.  Then, he manages to hit Joe hard enough to knock him down and I see him go to reach for something, probably his gun.  I did the only thing I could do and whipped out my knife and stabbed him.”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    As Bill finishes the story he looks over and sees George and Babe’s faces.  George looks at Toye worried.  “Is that where you got the black eye?”  He asks and Toye nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “That guys had one hell of a punch.”  Toye rasps softly.  He gives George a look, almost telling him he was alright.  George seemingly understands him and sighs, nodding.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Wait, so why did a cop show up to the gallery?”  Babe asks, glancing at Lieb.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “After the two of them left that guy to bleed out in the alley, they made the very smart decision to come to the gallery to hide out.  Apparently the cops have evidence, or at least a hunch you guys came here last night.”  Lieb explains, looking between Toye and Bill. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “We didn’t know where else to go.  We were still not even halfway home when Bill killed him so we didn’t want to risk getting caught for being suspicious.  The gallery was only 2 blocks away.”  Toye explains and Lieb sighs.   </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Well, now the cops are onto you.” Harry says, looking down and shaking his head.  Buck thinks for a moment and sighs.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Joe, do you remember the cop that came to talk to you?”  He asks and Joe nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Yeah, his name was Carwood Lipton.  He’s some detective with the N.Y.P.D..”  Lieb says and pulls out the business card Lipton had given him.  He passes it to Buck who looks at it for a moment.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “You think you can find this guy, Harry?”  Buck asks and Harry looks at the card for a moment before nodding.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Sure, I’ll try to find as much as I can on him.”  Harry says and tucks the card into the breast pocket of his shirt.  “As for you two,”  He starts, looking at Bill and Toye.  “You need to get out of the city for a week or so.  We’ll make sure the cops are off your trail before you come back.”  Harry says and they nod.  “I’ll ask Nix if his family’s house down the shore is empty.  I know it’s not ideal but it’s the best option we have on such short notice.  As soon as I know, I’ll call you, so have your bags packed and ready.  Only bring what you can carry in one bag.”  He instructs and the two of them nod.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “And what am I supposed to do?”  Liebgott asks.  “Even though I wiped the footage and log of evidence they were here, Lipton still wanted me to send it to him.  He’s gonna notice somethigs not right with the tape.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “I’ll try to figure something out.”  Buck says.  “But for the time being, comply with him.  Act like you have nothing to hide, but don’t tell him anything that incriminates Bill, Joe, or yourself.”  Liebgott gives a nod.  Harry nods and looks at George and Babe.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “While we fix this, you two better not do anything.  Winters is already not gonna be happy about any of this.  He doesn't need you two idiots messing up too.”  Harry tells him and the two of them nod, mumbling, ‘Of course’ and ‘We’ll be fine.’  Harry gives a nod and looks around at the rest of them.  “Okay, this meeting is dismissed.”  He says and they nod, getting up.  Everyone heads off to do their own thing.  Bill and Babe head back to their apartment. George and Toye head out together.  Buck and Harry both go their separate ways too and Joe heads upstairs, making sure no one had seen any of them leave the “storage closet”.  Little did he know, one employee had witnessed Joe walk out of the closet and lock it.  </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Follow me on tumblr @band-of-brothers-headcannons for more Band of Brothers content.</p>
<p>Thank you to @muerete-cagnado on tumblr for being my Beta Reader!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. A Bump in the Road</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>    Harry walks into the large office building, wearing one of the best suits he owned. He didn’t want to stand out against all the businessmen and women. He strides through the main lobby with all the confidence in the world. Taking a look around, he notes that the lobby seating area is decently sized with just a few people sitting and chatting. They were busier than normal. He makes his way to the front desk and leans against it. The secretary, Augusta, looks up when she sees someone standing in front of her.</p>
<p>    “How can I help you, Sir?” She asks, pausing her typing for just a moment.</p>
<p>    Harry flashes her a charming smile before saying, “I need to see Lewis Nixon.” Augusta nods and types a few things in before looking back up at him.</p>
<p>    “Do you have an appointment?” She asks and sees Harry shake his head.</p>
<p>    “No, but I’m a good friend of his. Harry Welsh.” Harry says. Augusta signs and seems to think for a moment.</p>
<p>    “I’m sorry, Sir. I can’t send you up without an appointment-” Augusta’s voice is cut off by the man in question.</p>
<p>    “Harry! What are you doing here?” Lewis asks, smiling as he walks over to his friend. Harry smiles back and turns around.</p>
<p>    “Just wanted to come visit you, didn’t know I had to make an appointment.” The shorter man jokes and Lewis chuckles.</p>
<p>    “Well come on, I’m sure Dick is already up in my office. I was just grabbing lunch.” Lewis says and gives Augusta a friendly wave before leading Harry to the staff elevator. He leans down a bit to swipe his lanyard keycard in front of the sensor before pressing the button. They wait a moment before the doors open and both men step inside. Lewis reaches forward and presses the button to the floor his office was on. The two of them stand in comfortable silence as they ride up to one of the top floors.</p>
<p>    The elevator comes to a slow halt and lets out a high pitched ding, signalling the men they were at their floor. The door slides open and Lew leads Harry past the secretary and to his office. Lew opens the door and Harry walks inside. He sees Dick stand from the chair he was sitting in and turns around to greet them. Behind him, Lewis closes and locks the door and walks over to Dick.</p>
<p>    “Hey, Honey.” Lewis says and leans up to peck the ginger’s lips. Dick smiles and pecks back before Lewis walks past him and takes a seat at his desk. Harry smiles softly at them before sitting in the chair next to Dick’s. He gives a greeting to the taller man, who returns it, sitting back down.</p>
<p>    “So, what’s this about, Harry?” Lewis asks, opening the bag he had been carrying. He pulls out a sub and unwraps it, starting to eat.</p>
<p>    Harry sighs and sits up a bit. “Bill and Joe slipped up and the cops are onto them.” He watches as Dick tenses and Lewis pauses mid bite. Harry briefly explained what had happened a few nights ago and he watches as Dick’s face slowly becomes more stressed looking. “And they need a place to hide out. I figured the best place for them would be a one of your family homes.” Harry adds and looks at Lewis. The brunette signs and nods, setting his sandwich down.</p>
<p>    “Yeah, that would be the best place. If you need it, I can give them the key to the beach house down the shore. No one’s been there since I was a kid, so they should be safe.” Lewis says and Harry nods. Dick sighs and rubs a hand over his face.</p>
<p>    “Do we know any information about the cop that visited Liebgott?” He asks and looks at Harry, who nods.</p>
<p>    “Yeah, I did some digging on him and found some interesting things out. His name is Carwood Clifford Lipton. He’s lived in N.Y.C. for 5 years now and he’s been a detective with the N.Y.P.D. ever since. Before that, he was born and raised in Huntington, West Virginia. His parents were Clifford Lipton and Zerelda Lipton, and he has a couple younger siblings. When he was about 10, his father died in a car accident and they never found or arrested the person, since it was a hit or run. He graduated from high school, and went to Marshall University. There, he graduated with a major in Law Enforcement and a minor in Criminology. After that, he moved up here to N.Y.C.. He has a partner, Detective Wayne Sisk, goes by Skinny. He’s new to the department so there’s not much info on him.” Harry finishes.</p>
<p>    “Do you think he’s a threat to us?” Lewis asks and Harry nods.</p>
<p>    “This guy is serious business, he rarely leaves a case cold. And I don’t think he’ll drop this no matter how much you bribe him, considering he was a friend of the cop Bill killed.”</p>
<p>     Lewis glances at Dick and can practically see the gears in his brain turning as he thinks. “Maybe we should have Speirs put a hit on him.” Lewis says and Dick quickly shakes his head.</p>
<p>    “No, that’ll draw too much attention to us. It’s bad enough one cop was already killed, but if the one investigating that officer’s death is killed, then people might start to piece the puzzle together.” Dick says, looking at Lew and the other man sighs.</p>
<p>    “Why do you always have to be right.” Lewis mumbles rhetorically, and puts his head in his hands.</p>
<p>    “What do you want us to do then, Dick?” Harry asks and Dick pauses, thinking.</p>
<p>    “Have Luz watch him. Make sure he keeps his distance but is still able to know what Lipton is doing and planning. We need to try and keep the upper hand here. As far as we know, Lipton is just starting to piece things together. We have to know the steps he’s taking. It’s the only way to protect ourselves.” Dick says, glancing between Harry and Lewis. Then he looks at his husband. “Your father has connections to the police, right?”</p>
<p>    Lewis nods and adds, “He and the current police chief went to college together.” Dick nods and takes a second to continue forming a plan.</p>
<p>    “You have to befriend Lipton. We can only learn so much from afar, we need someone on the inside that’s close to Lipton but not heavily watched by the police. That means we can’t have Martin monitor him, Martin’s loyal to us but he’s too far up the chain of command to get any real intell without being suspicious. Is there any way you can get close to him, Lew?”</p>
<p>    Lewis sighs and rests his head on his hand, pondering a way. Then he remembers something. “My dad hosts this gala type thing every year in honor of the N.Y.P.D.. It’s normally a way for him to show his support for the police and give them extra funding. My guess is that this Lipton is gonna go and be there, I can probably get close to him. Or at least establish some kind of relationship.” The brunette explains. Both Harry and Dick nod. Lewis then turns his attention to his husband. “If you want, Hun, you can come. I know you’re not a party person but it’ll look strange if the CEO’s spouse isn’t there. It’s kind of a company tradition for spouses to come with their partners.” He says and Harry can barely hold back his smile at the look on Dick’s face.</p>
<p>    “Basically what you’re saying is you want me to hug your arm and look pretty.” Dick deadpans.</p>
<p>    “Oh, Baby, you always look pretty.” Lewis flirts and gives a little wink, which makes Dick roll his eyes a bit, hiding a smile.</p>
<p>    Harry laughs, “You my god, you two are almost as bad as me and Kitty.” Lewis chuckles and Dick shakes his head in amusement.</p>
<p>    “Plus, we’ve been married for almost 3 years and you’ve yet to show your face at any company events. Not even the company picnic.” Lewis adds and Dick leans back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. He looks away for a moment, debating it. Then, his eyes travel back to Lewis and his gaze softens a bit.</p>
<p>    “Alright, fine. I’ll go with you. But I am not acting like some ditzy house-husband.” Dick says and Lew sighs.</p>
<p>    “Dick, as far as everyone knows, you are a house-husband. You don’t have to act like someone you’re not, just don’t get offended when the wives drag you off to gossip about their husbands. I don’t like it, but this company is really old fashioned. And they can’t exactly know you’re the head of a crime family. Only top level employees know.” Lewis explains softly, his eyes never leaving Dick’s. The ginger sighs and gives in.</p>
<p>    “Fine. When the gala comes up, Lew and I will go and try to get acquainted with Lipton. In the meantime, Luz needs to watch him and see what he’s planning. If something goes wrong, I trust his judgement of what to do. And as for Guarnere and Toye, they can stay at the beach house for as long as they need, just as long as it gets the police off their trail.” Dick finishes and Harry nods, standing up.</p>
<p>    “I’ll send Bill the address and send them the passcode to the house. If they need anything else, they can call me.” Lewis says and Harry nods.</p>
<p>    “Thanks again, Nix.” Harry says before saying goodbye and heading out as he calls Bill and Joe.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! Comments are very much appreciated!</p>
<p>I'll try to upload every week, but if it takes longer than that please be patient!</p>
<p>This piece was inspired by a Band of Brothers edit on tumblr by @hillbillied.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. An Invitation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  
  <span>Carwood takes his sunglasses off as he shoulders the door of the precinct open.  He tucks them into his coat pocket and gives a friendly wave to the receptionist as he walks past her.  He makes sure not to tip the cup tray he held in his hand as he heads down the hallway.  Carwood passes his coworker’s offices as he does.  He makes his way back and knocks on Skinny’s office door.  He hears a soft, ‘Come in!’ before he turns the handle and walks inside.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  
  <span>“Morning Wayne.”  Carwood voices, closing the door and walking over to the younger man’s desk.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  
  <span>“Morning Lip,” Skinny greets, not looking up from his laptop as Carwood sets down the tray.  Skinny sees this out of the corner of his eye and looks up.  “Oh, thanks for getting coffee.”  The man says and takes his cup, sipping it.  Carwood nods and sips his own coffee.  He stands behind Skinny and looks over his shoulder.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  
  <span>Before Carwood had entered, Skinny had been reviewing security camera footage and checking motion sensor logs.  Carwood sees this and asks, “Is that the information Liebgott sent over?”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Skinny nods.  “Yeah, I’ve been looking over it and I can’t find anything.”  He says, rolling back the footage.  “I’ve checked every single minute of this footage, from 10 p.m. when the gallery closes to 8 a.m. when it opens.  No one enters or leaves.  The only person in the building is the security guard, but he doesn’t leave the security desk.  He’s even asleep at 11 a.m. when the suspects supposedly entered the building.  And same at 12 when the third guy enters.  I even checked the outside security cameras and there’s nothing.”  He explains and that causes Carwood to furrow his brow.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Can you go back and start to tape at 11 p.m.?  Put it at 5 times speed.”  The elder officer instructs and Skinny does so.  He presses play and the two of them watch as the gallery remains empty other than the guard.  Carwood makes sure to watch him and notes that he tends to roll his head and shift as he sleeps in his chair behind the security desk.  At roughly 11:45 p.m., the camera cuts out for just a split second before returning.  Carwood looks back at the security guard and sees that he doesn’t move for the next 2 hours of the recording.  Then in the early morning of the next day, the camera cuts for a split second before returning and the guard suddenly snaps to life, seeming to be watching the camera’s again.  Then at 8 a.m. the guard gets up and a man enters the gallery, Joseph Liebgott.  Skinny stops the footage and looks at Carwood.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Go back to 11:45.”  Carwood says and Skinny nods, doing so.  He waits a minute until the camera flickers before saying, “Is it just me, or does it look like someone froze the frame and then unfreezes it an hour or so before the gallery opens?”  Skinny looks at it again before his eyes widen slightly.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Oh my god, you’re right.  Liebgott probably edited the tape so that we wouldn’t see the suspects enter the gallery.”  Carwood nods and smirks a little.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Too bad he didn’t do too great of a job fixing up the cut.”  Carwood adds and Skinny nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Is this enough to ask a judge for a search warrant?”  The man asks and sees the latter shake his head.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “No, but it is enough for us to start looking into the gallery and Mr. Liebgott.  If he’s trying to protect the men that killed Talbert, then there has to be a connection between him and the Crime Family Talbert was trying to investigate.”  Carwood says and Skinny nods, closing his laptop.  “I want you to find that security guard and try to interview him, see if he saw anything or knows anything.  While you do that, I’ll get to work figuring out how this gallery and Joseph Liebgott tie into everything.”  Skinny nods and Carwood smiles softly, grabbing his coffee.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Good work so far, Wayne.”  He says and pats the kid on the back.  This makes the latter smile and nod.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Thanks, Lip.”  Skinny says and sips his coffee as Carwood nods, walking out.  The older man leaves his office and heads to his own, just next store.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Carwood steps inside and closes the door behind himself.  He lets out a sigh and sets his coffee down before shrugging off his suit jacket.  He hangs it up on the coat rack next to the door and strides over to his desk, pulling out the chair and taking a seat.  He opens up his laptop and puts on his reading glasses and gets to work.  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>    After an hour or so of searching, Carwood had gathered quite a bit of information on Liebgott and his gallery.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Joseph David Liebgott was born on May 17th in Lansing, Michigan.  He was born to Joseph and Mary Liebgott.  He lived an uneventful life throughout his schooling; he did decently in class and only ever got a few detentions.  He worked a few jobs throughout high school, including being a barber’s assistant at a local barber shop.  However, during his junior year of high school, he dropped out and decided to  move to N.Y.C..  There he became a cabi.  He worked as a cabi for about 4 years until he suddenly quit his job and became the manager of the James Street Art Gallery.  To Carwood, that seemed like a lackluster kind of name, especially considering how modern and expensive the art inside looked.    </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    The James Street Art Gallery had been opened almost 5 years ago and was doing very good in business.  It was originally opened and owned by Lewis Nixon III, who was also the one to hire Liebgott as the manager.  A month after the gallery had opened, Nixon signed off the gallery to Liebgott, who then became the second and most recent owner of the gallery.  He ran the art gallery very well.  He established relationships with local artists and artisans and gave them a place to display their art.  He also made partnerships with many of N.Y.C. 's upper class, including the Nixon family who still supported the gallery even if they were no longer the owners.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Carwood jots all of this information down and makes a few notes.  Just as he’s about to get up to go tell Skinny what he found, he hears a knock on his door.  “Come in,”  He calls and sets his pen down. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    The door opens and  Martin walks in.  “Good morning, Detective Lipton.”  The man greets.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Morning, Sergeant Martin.  How may I help you?”  Carwood asks, looking up at his superior.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “I just wanted to see how you were doing on the Talbert case.”  Martin says crossing his arms over his chest.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “So far we have a lead, or at least what I think is a lead.  We don’t have I.D. on who the men were that killed Talbert, but we know that after they murdered him, they went to the James Street Art Gallery.  I talked to the owner of the gallery, Joseph Liebgott and he sent us the security footage from the gallery that night and there was clear evidence of tampering.”  Carwood informs, looking at the man in front of him.  Martin nods and seems to take in that information, almost considering it.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “And how do you consider that a lead?”  Martin asks.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Well, Sir, Liebgott seems to be connected to the men that Talbert was following.  If he wasn’t, then what’s the point in covering for them?  I believe that the two men were a part of the crime family that Talbert was investigating and Liebgott has connections to them.”  Carwood adds and the other man nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Detective Sisk is working on this case with you, right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Yes, Sir.  That’s correct.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Martin nods and thinks for a moment.  “I think I’m going to transfer you two over to the Organized Crime Division.  If this case is panning out how you say, this isn’t just a simple homicide.”   </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Yes, Sir.  I think that would be a good idea.”  Carwood agrees and nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Martin gives a nod.  “Good, then tell Detective Sisk and report to Sergeant Dike tomorrow morning.  For today, just keep gathering evidence and following that lead.”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Carwood nods.  “Yes, Sir.  Thank you, Sir.”  He says and sees Martin give a nod before walking out.  As the door shuts, Carwood feels a giant sigh leave his lips.  It was almost a groan.  He knew being transferred to the Organized Crime Division was going to give him and Skinny a lot more resources, but he dreaded having Norman Dike as his new boss.  He had heard horror stories of the man and he did not look forward to working with him.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    After a moment, Carwood gets up and walks to Skinny’s office, knocking.  He hears the other man give a call of invitation and Carwood opens the door, walking in.   </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Hey Lip, did you find anything out?”  Skinny asks, looking up.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Carwood nods.  “Yeah, I did,”  He says and relaves all the information he just learned.  “Were you able to get a hold of the security guard?”  The man asks and Skinny nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Yeah, his name is John Hall.  He was recently hired after the last security guard got fired.  Some officers are bring him in for interrogation.  He should be here in a few minutes.”  Skinny says and Carwood nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “That’s good.  Good job.”  Carwood says and Skinny smiles a bit, nodding to himself.  “Oh, and before I forget to tell you, Sergeant Martin is moving us to O.C.U..  We have to report to Sergeant Dike tomorrow morning.”  He adds and Carwood can visibly see Skinny’s face drop.  The younger man groans and leans back in his chair.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Please tell me you’re joking?”  Skinny practically begs and when he sees Carwood shake his head he groans again.  “I don’t wanna work with Dike.”  He whines and Carwood chuckles a bit.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “I know it’s bad but at least he’s not working on the case with us.”  Carwood points out and Skinny sighs.  He goes to say something before someone knocks on the door and opens it.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Detective Sisk, the guy you asked us to bring in is in interrogation room 2.”  An officer informs and Skinny nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  
  <span>“Thank you, Officer.  We’ll be right there.”  Skinny says and the officer nods before closing the door and leaving.  Skinny stands from his desk and walks out of his office with Carwood.  The two men make their way down to the interrogation rooms and Carwood grabs the file on Hall before they enter.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Inside, the room was incredibly bland.  Grey cinder block walls, concrete flooring, and exposed pipes.  In the middle of the room stood a long metal table and two matching metal chairs.  In one of the chairs, a young man, maybe 19 years old, sits.  He looks terrified as he watches the detectives walk in.  Skinny stands next to the empty chair as Carwood walks over and takes a seat.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    The older man sets the file down and opens in, taking a look inside.  Hall glances down at the file and sees a photo of himself, it was his old high school school picture.  He glances back up at Carwood, nervous.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “You have a squeaky clean record, Mr. Hall.”  Carwood says, beginning to read about the boy.  “You got straight A’s in school, graduated top 25 of your class.  That’s pretty impressive.   The worst thing you’ve done in your life was punch a kid during the 10th grade.”  Carwood says and glances at the boy across from him.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Hall nods and swallows nervously.  “I-Is there a reason I’m here, Sir?”  He asks, his voice shaking with nerves.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Carwood chuckles softly.  “Yes, we’re doing an investigation right now.  We don’t think you’re a suspect, so you can calm down.”  He explains and watches Hall sigh and relax his shoulders a bit.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “What’s the investigation about?”  The brunette asks, taking a quick look at Skinny.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Well, all I’m going to tell you is that a detective was murdered a few nights ago and we have reason to believe you saw the suspects who killed him.”  Carwood says and sees Hall tense a little.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “What?  I have no clue what you’re talking about.”  Hall rambles out.  “I-I don’t know anyone whose killed anyone.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Carwood puts a gentle hand up to stop him, “Just tell me what you did at work Wednesday night.” He instructs and can see the gears in the boy’s head turning, almost like he was thinking back or trying to remember something.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Uhm, I did the usual.  Sit at the security desk and watch the cameras.”  Hall says and Carwood can see his Adam's apple bob slightly.  “Nothing unusual happened.”  He says and Carwood nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Do you remember seeing these men at all?  Either at the gallery or maybe after hours?”  Carwood asks and pulls out the wanted posters for the two men that killed Talbert.  He slides them in front of Hall and sees the boy’s eyes scan over them.  Carwood notices a gleam of recognition in his eyes and already knows the answer. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “No, uh, I’ve never seen those men before.”  Hall lies, and not very well.  Carwood raises an eyebrow and glances at Skinny, who seems to not believe him either.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “John, you’re not in trouble if you saw them in the gallery.  We just want you to tell us whatever you can about them.”  Carwood tells him softly.  He knew Hall had information, but he could tell he was too scared to say anything.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    Hall quickly glances between Carwood and Skinny and takes a deep breath before asking, “If I’m not under arrest, I can leave, right?”  He asks and SKinny sighs, nodding a little.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “If that’s what you really want to do, then yes.  Otherwise, you can stay and talk to us.  We’ll protect you if you know something.”  Carwood assures him and Hall pauses, thinking for a long moment.  Then he gets up and grabs his coat.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “I don’t have anything to tell you.”  Hall lies and starts to walk out.  Before he does, Carwood grabs his arm and sighs.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Fine.  At least take my card.  It has my email and number on it, so you can contact me if you remember something or you finally wanna have a chat.”  Carwood says and pulls out one of his cards, holding it out for the boy to take.  Hall glances at it before quickly taking it and walking out as fast as he can.  Carwood lets out a long, tired sigh and looks at Skinny.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “He definitely knew something.”  Skinny observes and the blonde nods, rubbing a hand over his face.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “My guess is that he was there when the two men broke into the gallery and Liebgott probably threatened him to keep him quiet.  My only hope is that we get him to talk before he either gets killed or sucked into the Crime Family.”  Carwood says and looks at SKinny, who nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Well, there’s not much else we can do as of right now except wait.  We don’t have enough evidence against Liebgott to get a search warrant or arrest and we still haven’t IDed these guys.”  Skinny says and gestures to wanted posters.  Carwood signs and nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “For now, we need to do more searching and try to find any connections we can between the Crime Family, these men, and Liebgott.”  Carwood says and stands up, putting the file back together.  Skinny nods and walks out of the room with Carwood.  The two men head back to their offices to continue their long dig for evidence.</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>    By the time 5 o’clock rolls around, Carwood had barely found anything.  He had discovered a few more ties between the Nixon family and Joseph Liebgott, but most were because of the gallery or business deals.  And as for the Nixon Family, they hadn’t had any involvement with any criminals and especially not any crime family.  Carwood had basically found himself at a dead end.  He was almost ready to head home when he hears a knock on his door.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Come in.”  He calls and the door to his office opens, relieving Sergeant Martin. “Hey Serg.”  Carwood voices, closing his laptop a little.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Hey Lip, I just wanted to stop in and give you this.”  Martin says and strides towards the desk, holding an envelope.  Carwood cocks a brow and reaches for it, taking the envelope.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “What is it?”  He blonde questions, prying the paper open.  He pulls it out and scans over the fancy lettering on the cardstock.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “It’s an invitation to the Annual Nixon Family Gala.”  Martin says and Carwood glances at him before he continues reading.  “It’s a big ball type thing Stanhope Nixon throws every year in honor of the N.Y.P.D..  It’s basically just a big ploy for the Chief to get more money for the department and for Stanhope to stay relevant in New York’s politics.”  Martin adds and Carwood nods, setting the invite down.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “And why am I being invited?”  Carwood wonders.  “I’ve been a detective at the N.Y.P.D for almost 5 years now and I’m suddenly invited to the annual gala?”  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Well, apparently only the best of the department are invited each year.  And since you’ve been working real hard recently, the Chief sees it fit that you come.  And the same for your partner, Detective Sisk.”  Martin says and  Carwood nods, hesitantly.  This seemed off to him, but he doesn’t question it further.  He glances back down at the invite and sees that the date of the gala is tomorrow, Saturday night.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “Thanks for letting me know, Serg.”  Carwood says and Martin nods.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>    “See you tomorrow, Lip.  Don’t forget, it’s a black tie event.”  The short man says and walks out before Carwood can say anything else.  He looks back down at the invite and feels a strange sensation in his gut.  He knew this wasn't a coincidence.  The Nixon Family had to be involved in this plot somehow, but he didn’t know how.  Luckily, he could use this event to get some information from the family.  Maybe he could even start to piece this piece together.  </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Follow me on tumblr @band-of-brothers-headcannons for more Band of Brothers content.</p>
<p>Thank you to @muerete-cagnado on tumblr for being my Beta Reader!</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you so much for reading!  I hope you enjoyed it!  Comments are very much appreciated!  </p><p> </p><p>This piece was inspired by a Band of Brothers edit on tumblr by @hillbillied.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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